Kneejerk Central: Grade the Draft

[Merlin]

Pick Efficiency: C

They grossly overpaid to move up and get a guy they fell in love with in Fiske. Cue "I fooled around and fell in love" video.

But they also managed to hit a shit ton of need positions. After this draft there are few needs left, the biggest being LT which is two deep for this season, and CB which does have a lot of potential "if's" lined up that may hit for them. Well and TE.


Pick Quality: A-

This was not a freak show type draft with uber ceiling types.

Verse & Fiske are blue fuckin collar as it gets. Physicality was more of a theme than anything else, particularly for the defensive front. If you wondered what the mentality of our new DC is going to be... Look no further than the players they prioritized. Two high floor starters who have some upside still. Then Jackson and Davis to round out a very strong and physical rotation. The defensive front badly needed this draft to survive this division.

Safety I have some concern that he didn't do all the combine stuff. I don't think he's a plug and play guy. I'm not certain about him. But he is a ballhawk and we needed that in our secondary. He is fluid and natural in tracking the ball. Get him coached up and ready and playing within the scheme and with Curl also added as FA the safety position is probably our most improved on the roster.

Corum fills a backup role while also pressing Williams. Both backs are big time competitors and will respond to the challenge which is great for our run game. Every season it seems we suffer an injury at some point and are left with a steaming pile of excrement in the backfield. Not this season. Corum is a stud. Might even be too much RB for what we needed (they could have waited to address it) but I am not gonna complain. And I like that the run game is a priority.

Rams didn't fuck around with Kicker in taking Karty. Solid as hell. Hopefully no more drama on that front.

And then all three of those late rounders look like they have a chance to win depth roles. Maybe Whittington can unfuck our return game. Or maybe we find a returner among the UDFAs.

Overall: B

I think this was precisely the type of draft they needed. Fill a ton of holes on defense and in that front. Find a kicker. Ensure that RB doesn't fuck us over this season with injury. If we are a playoff team this year then we're gonna need to use a 2025 future pick to move up to get an LT most likely but that's a problem for next year. This roster looks a ton better and I think the boys really outdid themselves once again.

Not all Snead & McVay's drafts have been great. Many have been subpar IMO. This staff has just done a great job of overcoming that. But last year's draft was insane given where the picks were. And this one feels like an extension of that. If so then this team will be right in the mix vs the best teams in the playoffs.

 

[tklongball]

I'm fine with the cost of Fiske. If he was their guy, I have no problem moving up, and at the top of the 2nd round, it is a seller's market so it is going to cost you. It was a long way to our next pick. I think this was a Good to Great Draft, in my way-too-soon assessment.

 

[El Chapo Jr]

I'm just pumped that our D-Line and O-Line are solid as fuck now. Winning the trenches makes everyone's job that much easier.

 

[CoachAllred]

Can't wait to see the defensive front grow and improve weekly.

They may be all 1st and 2nd year guys BUT Everyone of these guys are

Completely Rabid - Ultra High Energy Headhunters !

Gonna be a blast to watch

 

[OldSchool]

I love it without a doubt. So many positions of need addressed and we see such a great focus on the front 7 to mirror the focus we put on the iOL.

 

[Ramhusker]

Great draft. It fell to the Rams for the most part. I mean, we traded once. Got to believe the asking price for trades in this draft must have been too high for the Rams. Since we used all of our picks in order except for 52 and 155, I'd have to say the Rams did pretty damn good, B+ or A- good.

Everybody was worried about the Defense. How worried are you now?

 

[FrantikRam]

Yea a third next year to move up wouldnt have been enough, and I wouldn't have wanted to trade a 3rd this year. So Im happy with the way that happened.

It's an A++.

Verse and Fiske are freaky athletic, had the production AND have that mindset and work ethic? Yikes.

Backup RB was a huge need, and I think Corum is one of the best we could have hoped for.

Kinchens is a turnover machine and that has arguably been our biggest weakness. He may not start day one, but like John John in 2017, I bet he will be a starter a few weeks in.

On day 3 we finished our front 7, got a WR, kicker and two offensive lineman - and all great value.

Can't say enough nice things about this draft. The holes next year will be WR, LT and CB - but we may re-sign Jackson, and CB can easily be another FA signing next year.

I think we are super bowl bound.

 

[Memento]

All righty, let me get out my grading tool (don't worry, no bad grades; I loved this draft):

Jared Verse - A+

(I was stunned that Verse was still there. I expected him to be gone within the fifteenth pick. We had a hard choice with him and Quinyon Mitchell, but I think we made the absolute right decision. This gets the "this is a fucking awesome pick" grade from me.)

Braden Fiske - A

(This is a fucking awesome pick. Only reason this gets an A and not an "A+" is because of the price we paid to obtain him, but I am not unhappy with the player. Fiske is going to be an awesome pass-rusher from the interior.)

Blake Corum - B-

(Still a bit concerned about the mileage, the lack of third down pass-catching ability, injury history, and the value, but the talent and intangibles are clearly there. We'll see.)

Kamren Kinchens - B-

(I'm warming up, somewhat. Am I still concerned about his freelancing and overall athleticism this early? Yes, but hopefully Shula coaches it out of him, while still being a solid ballhawk. We'll see.)

Brennan Jackson - B+

(Definitely wasn't expecting this pick, but I'm more than happy with it. B-Jax played on an awful Washington State team, but played his heart out, beat blockers with pure hustle and technical skill. Definitely gets a good grade.)

Tyler Davis - B

(Maybe not a sexy pick, but Davis is a solidly built nose tackle who will occupy gaps, be immovable and stuff the run. Solid pick this late.)

Joshua Karty - A+

(We finally have a kicker! We've solved the issue! How can I grade this as anything else?)

Jordan Whittington - A+

(I can't say enough about how much I love this pick. I wanted two wide receivers, but he will be a fantastic punt/kick returner, will work his ass off on special teams, and do whatever it takes to help this team. I bet he'll be a starter when Kupp eventually declines.)

Beaux Limmer - A+

(I see no reason why Limmer lasted this long; he has fantastic tape, and there were a lot of inferior centers that went before him. This is a fantastic pick, country strong, technician, will be at least a fantastic backup, if not a spot starter.

KT Leveston - B

(Part of a dominant K-State line, played left tackle, and was a solid, solid blocker. Maybe not a starter, but definitely a useful backup, and that's always necessary on the O-line.)

Overall, this gets an A-. I'm still concerned about our third round picks, but everything else, I'm sold on. Bring on the fucking season, baby!!!

 

[Loyal]

You know how objective I am. A+++

View: https://i.imgur.com/wPdtlkO.jpg

 

[jrry32]

I didn't have much time this year to evaluate players, so I'm not going to offer a grade. I'll simply say that I think this is a great foundation-building draft as we start to transition from the old window to hopefully a new window. We drafted some really, really good football players. I don't know how high their ceilings are, but the ones I know should at minimum be glue guys. The sort of players who occupy useful roles, are strong leadership presences, and hold a unit together. I'm also overjoyed that we got the exact kicker I wanted. I think Karty is going to be a stud.

I'm especially excited to Jared Verse in action. He plays a violent brand of football.

 

[Antonius]

On a scale of 1-10, I’d give it an A+

 

[Neil039]

Solid B+, an A if they had not traded away the 2nd next year.

 

[OldSchool]

You know how objective I am. A+++

View: https://i.imgur.com/wPdtlkO.jpg

How'd you get Andy Reid to endorse the Rams draft class?

 

[methomas50]

For years this team has been top heavy and while it put them very much in the hunt, injuries and the reserves that had to play through them was normally a sizable drop off. I feel good about the trenches now, Stopping the run was a priority I think they accomplished. A balanced offense and balls to the wall defense headed your way this year. Keep your draft picks!

 

[thirteen28]

I'm not going to give it a grade per se, but in the context of this offseason, I fucking love it. Both in free agency and the draft, we bolstered the trenches and became more physical and nasty. While a guy like AD is irreplaceable, I'd say we did a great job in this draft moving beyond him now that the inevitable has occurred.

I loved the first two picks especially. These are not only physical, but play with a streak of nastiness and are the types that, to paraphrase Rodney Dangerfield, will sack the QB then go after his family. I think the fact that they were friends and college teammates who compete to see who can work the hardest provides some non-quantifiable value that more than makes up for the alleged overpay. And speaking of the overpay, I couldn't give two shits about that - we didn't overpay for Bobby Wagner a little over a decade ago, and how'd that work out for us again?

On offense, our number one need was a second back to spell Kyren without a dropoff or big change in style. While Corum may need some seasoning in the pass game (both blocking and catching), he was nevertheless a great pick for what we do offensively.

Overall, both the draft and free agency this offseason are indicative of a continued transition from a finesse team to a mean, nasty, physical team that is going to hurt the opponents and keep their trainers busy in the week following their unfortunate encounter with the Rams. And yet, despite becoming a physical team, this is still a Sean McVay team with the pieces to fuck you up bad in the passing game.

It's hard to believe I'm saying this in the wake of AD retiring, but man I can't wait for next season to start.

 

[snackdaddy]

I'm fine with the cost of Fiske. If he was their guy, I have no problem moving up, and at the top of the 2nd round, it is a seller's market so it is going to cost you. It was a long way to our next pick. I think this was a Good to Great Draft, in my way-too-soon assessment.

I'm good with the cost too as long as he's the guy they wanted. The way things were going I think it was obvious he wouldn't last to number 52. And if they thought about DeJean they woulda had to move up for him too. Fiske was the best available DT. Newton was long gone. Even Sweat was gone if they were thinking about him. Although I'd rank Fiske above Sweat.

They wanted a disruptive DT and they got one. And looking at what was available by the time it got to number 52 I don't think I don't think there was anyone that we needed as good as Fiske at any position. Him and Verse work very well in tandem.

 

[Merlin]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znQyDaXXXP0

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

This was a very good draft. It added some starters and improved the existing depth in some spots. No AD’s or Kupps but some quality players

 

[A.J. Hicks]

Early and biased. But I really I really liked this draft.

Verse/Fiske is a great get and I love that our team was determined to get Fiske on day 2. It was a lot to give up.... But we identified a guy and said we need him.

The fact him and Verse are so close is amazing!

I actually like that Corum has such a similar game to Williams. Mcvay thrives when everything always looks the same.

KICKER!

I like the wide receiver a lot! Think he's going to surprise a bit with his ascension on the team - we all know Mcvay(Kupp) expects a lot out of his receivers.

 

[TexasRam]

Impossible to know how these guys pan out. Lots of outlets including NFL network think we had one of the best drafts along with the Steelers and Bears and a few other teams.

I love that we didn't get too cute. We attacked those areas of weakness we needed to fill.

We didn't draft a Tutu when Creed was there.

We didn't trade back multiple times to get a Taylor Rapp.

I would have loved a move up to get Latu. But with the medical question and cost of moving up there are plenty of reasons why we just stayed at 19. Sounds like they really like Verse. Hard to say if his power game translates to the next level or if he is going to find himself stonewalled. Could also be a dominate player. We will see.

I liked the move up for Fiske. F them picks when you have a plan. I am good with it. Let's see how the player translates. Maybe the chemistry with the two Noles carries over? Who knows.

Loved the Corum pick, think backup to Kyren was critical and will pay dividens. He has a chance to be a superstar as well.

Got our kicker. The rest are wait and see for me. Tons of prospects look good but turn out to be nothing burgers, so who knows.